5 GOATs in 1 Campaign: Messi, Ronaldo, Vini Jr, Mbappé & LEGO
How LEGO’s World Cup 2026 campaign with four footballing elites reveals a deeper, powerful and authentic meaning.
This is such a pinch me moment. LEGO launched a World Cup 2026 campaign with a roster of star-studded elites: Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Vini Jr and Kylian Mbappé.
Talk about star-struck to the max.
The Reel posted on socials features the four players sat around a roundtable with the World Cup trophy LEGO set, piecing it together brick by brick. They then reveal their own LEGO mini-figures, each trying to place it on top of the trophy, swerving each other’s ultimate placement with a turn of the table. Finally, a young consumer in a blue hoodie appears, revealing a crevice in the trophy with his own mini-figure in the same matching hoodie. He takes it, places it on top, smirks, then leaves. Cinematic to say the least.
Currently, there’s over 400M views on the branded asset, which was posted by LEGO in collaboration with Ronaldo, Vini Jr, Mbappé and FIFA World Cup, and separately by Messi.
It looks fun at first glance – it is – but there’s something deeper going on here. The meaning behind the partnerships goes beyond a brand campaign with GOATs.
Enter: The Older Brother Effect.
Everyone Does Want a Piece
Captioned: ‘Everyone wants a piece #HonestlyItsNotAI’ plays to a true reality, with a witty hashtag.
On the surface, LEGO may be thought of as a toy you play with as a kid, then later grow out of. That’s far from reality.
LEGO’s consumer lifespan starts young and continues through teen years into adulthood. It’s a product that we all know, love and admire - for various reasons. The logo? Instantly recognisable. The brand perception? Unanimously positive.
What needs debunking is the possible stigma around engaging with LEGO beyond childhood, especially for teens who have a hierarchy of what’s ‘cool’ and ‘not cool’.
In a social media landscape where AI-generated content fills feeds, it’s become increasingly hard to discern real from fake. A campaign like this may therefore be assumed as AI produced, but LEGO are clever and self-aware. They understand the magnitude of this campaign, how impactful it is and the noise it will generate from the second ‘Post’ is pressed.
This is where the deeper meaning slots in. Add football into the mix - the most followed sport in the world - and you’ve got the perfect vehicle to express it.
The GOATs Get It
Let’s dissect the players in the campaign, starting with the two GOATs of the game: Messi and Ronaldo.
Both are parents, with young ones causing joy (and havoc, any parents relate?) growing up in a very digital world. With that comes challenges around phone regulation and boundaries. We wouldn’t be surprised - we’re actually totally confident - that their kids build, play and own LEGO.
Today, players partner with brands that align with them authentically. It matters that the partnerships they entertain reflect their behaviours, attitudes and habits.
So, for the two proud fathers to work with a brand that their little ones use just makes sense.
Truthfully, we’d back that Messi and Ronaldo engage with LEGO too. By proxy of their kids, and through their own motivation and genuine liking for the product.
These elites have been in the game for a while now. They’re beyond familiar with the criticism and negativity that comes with reaching that level of GOAT-ness (coined a new word).
Switching off from a match, from the industry and from external noise is difficult. It’s everywhere. Online platforms amplify that, and with how quickly tech innovation has advanced, the noise is only getting louder.
LEGO is a perfect outlet. Think about it. You’re completely present. Devoting time to engage with a product that channels mental agility, cognitive attention and creativity. Being in the moment, building something with an outcome that reflects your effort. Totally achievable. With sets that you choose - and there are many to choose from… the options are endless.
Bring in football-themed sets and you have even more relevance. A World Cup set? That’s the ultimate cherry on top.
A Mental Game, Too
That same premise applies to Vini Jr and Kylian Mbappé. Both players live and breathe the same ecosystem as Messi and Ronaldo. Elites who have surpassed the odds of making it pro to reach the stature they’re at. The physical grind is unmatched - and so is the mental resilience.
Being a footballer is as much a mental game as it is physical. Not just the constant external judgement and detailed analysis, but also the strength and demand required to perform on the pitch. Every tackle, every pass, every split-second decision requires cognitive power. Think agility, reaction time, focus and composure - both individually and in sync with teammates. It’s not an easy feat (duh).
That side of the game matters massively, even if physical performance often dominates the narrative.
That being said, off-pitch moments are opportunities to switch off and reset for the next big game. It’s a bidirectional relationship. LEGO offers both.
Just how chess enhances memory, focus and problem-solving, or playing piano improves executive function, attention and motor coordination, building LEGO activates similar brain pathways.
Spatial awareness, mental rotation, pattern recognition, attention span, creativity - critical skills that Vini Jr and Mbappé exhibit on the pitchday in day out.
By building with bricks, these players are building more than just a LEGO set - they’re building cognitive skills.
The Next Wave Shift
The campaign totally normalises LEGO for teens and Gen Z. An audience highly susceptible to peer judgement, seeking validation and wanting approval.
It’s an outdated status quo. Under the surface, it’s normal and common. It’s liked, engaged with and valued. Just like the caption states: “everyone wants a piece”. Yeah, we do.
Partnering with elites of the game pushes that even further. If they’re seen publicly with LEGO and representing the brand, then actually, so can Gen Z.
It’s that Older Brother Effect. Why ‘big brother’? It’s a documented concept in psychology, where older siblings shape younger siblings’ behaviour through social modelling. They look up to them. They’re the ‘cool’, immediate role models. This plays out at home, in school, on socials, in life - and in football.
Add in their football idols and it’s reinforced even more. They look up to the elites who make the game what it is. From their skills on the pitch to what they wear, what they listen to and how they spend their free time.
The campaign taps into that in an important, deeper way. It’s powerful – and we love it.
In fact, through our Rising Ballers network, we’re already seeing this play out. Young, up-and-coming players owning LEGO sets, building, rebuilding and engaging with them outside of matchdays and intense training.
So, it’s not just top-down influence. It’s already embedded within the next generation – The Next Wave.
The Bigger Build
The LEGO partnership is a masterclass in authentic activation. The product is there to help you, to build, to play, to have fun. Messi, Ronaldo, Vini Jr and Mbappé are showcasing that.
Everyone is speaking about the campaign and how impactful it is. The A* line-up is making waves. The amount of earned media off the back of it as well – astronomical. That part is done. What’s next? How do they continue to build this excitement through 2027?
If this is about influence, then the next move isn’t just the global icons – it’s the ones coming through. The young ballers in academies, in changing rooms, in environments we’re tapped into every day. They hold weight, more than many think.
That Older Brother Effect doesn’t stop at the GOATs. It carries through – between teammates, between age groups, between those a few steps ahead.
We’re already seeing it up close. Players building, switching off, resetting – then stepping back onto the pitch.
That’s how this keeps moving. Not just from top down, but from within the culture itself.
LEGO is building towards something bigger, brick by brick – and it’s not just kids at the table. We all want a piece.
Loved this campaign! Recently wrote about Lego’s collab with the GOATs too and it’s a brilliant move for LEGO to keep growing its adult builder base without alienating its ever-green franchises with Harry Potter and Star Wars. The collab came at the best time and the timing to buy it now justifies the premium of the set at approx £170
Fully agree. It’s not really about LEGO itself, it’s how the people involved change how it’s viewed. There’s a clear passing the baton feel as well, old guard to new guard, which reinforces it. That “older brother” effect mentioned probably does more than anything else here.